What does it mean to follow someone? It really depends on the context. If you follow someone on Twitter it simply means you have an interest in keeping up with what that person writes in 140 characters or less. If you follow a football team, it basically means you’re a fan – you cheer for them and wear their team logo on your person.

To be a follower of Jesus implies much, much more. Jesus’ first disciples will be the topic of our study in the gospel of John this Sunday.  We’ll be reading John 1:35-51.

To really understand the dynamic of what is transpiring in this text, we need to become familiarized with the 1st century practice of rabbis and their disciples. Here is an EXCELLENT article about that subject. Please, please do yourself a favor and take the time to read it.

As you read this account of Rabbi Jesus gathering his first Talmidim (disciples, followers) – what do you observe about following Jesus; what did it meant to them? Did they have questions, and what were they? What was their first order of business after they met Jesus? What significant thing happens with Simon (whose name means sinking sand) – and what might it imply for him?

As the disciples tell their friends about Jesus – what is the invitation they give?

What would you invite others to “come and see” about Jesus?

Here are the songs for this Sunday from the Eastgate Hymnal – its a good practice to meditate on what we’ll sing together and heighten our sense of worship.

“Love Song”
“Bless Your Name”
“There is No One”
“No Other Name”
“From the Inside Out”

This Sunday as we continue our study in the gospel of John, we’ll be reading John 1:19-34. 

This is the start of the narrative proper. Without any sort of deeper introduction, we get thrown into the middle of a scene that is already underway – there is conflict and tension, and we have to be familiar with the other gospel accounts to even understand who we’re reading about and what’s going on.

Here is an excellent source of information about John the Baptist, not only from Scripture, but also quotes from the ancient Jewish historian Josephus. I highly recommend you taking the time to read it.  It is very possible that John the Baptist was influenced by, or even in direct contact with the Essene community. It’s likely that his practice of baptism evolved from their practice of ritual cleansing.  Here’s a cool breakdown of the religious movements that dominated the cultural landscape of Jesus’ day.

John is sent to sound an alarm that Messiah is not just at hand, but here. His purpose is to encourage the right response from the covenant people of Israel. As we read this section of the narrative – what do you learn about John the Baptist’s view of himself, and how does that instruct us about how we should view ourselves in light of Christ?

What do we learn about Jesus and the Messiah’s ministry from John the Baptist? How does that effect us – what does it mean to our lives as 21st Century Christians?

Hope to see you Sunday!

If I were to obtain a retinal scan, a copy of your driver’s licence, your fingerprints, a sample of your DNA and your Social Security number…I would probably be able to positively identify you as a person. Those things are routinely used for security and courtrooms to identify people – but they are wholly impotent in defining a person’s identity – defining who they really are.

Personal identity is such a murky subject – philosophers and doctors of psychology have spent vast amounts of time studying this idea and have yet to come to a fully agreed upon means of drawing out one’s personal identity. So many different factors play into this as well – ethnicity, gender, culture, the nation we live in – but all of these are subservient to the core of who we really are.

It’s odd that answering that question is challenging – why are we so in the dark about something so intimate?

We’re going to consider this theme as we continue our study in the Gospel of John, reading John 1:6-13 this Sunday.

John the Baptist is introduced, but he is plainly described as NOT being the Light that shines in the darkness. There is a lot to consider there, especially as it touches church culture and leadership – but if we think about finding identity, what does that tell us about where our search should begin?

V12 in the Message version is so wonderful to me. I believe Peterson hits the target. V12 reveals who we really are…or at least, who we are meant to be.  This reveals who God is – and how is God revealed in this verse?  This reveals who we are. Does this make any difference in your life, or especially your self-awareness? Does knowing who you are in God’s pattern for life change anything about how you understand your life? If so…how?

I’m really stoked about this section – and I’m looking forward to digging into it!

If you haven’t been there, you should check out The Eastgate Hymnal – a 21st century hymnal. The songs we’ll be singing this Sunday are: Forever ; Holy is the Lord; Beautiful Lord; As Children; and You Are My King  – check out the lyrics and read the meditation to be prepared to enter into our corporate worship time.

See you Sunday!

Well…if we make it through these floods, this Sunday we’ll be introducing a new study which will take up our Sundays for many weeks to come. We’ll be embarking on an exploration of the Gospel of John.

I struggled a lot with how to introduce this study. We can’t read John like the other three, synoptic gospels. I thought about just posting a poem…but that seemed a little too ambiguous and maybe even pretentious. However, it is vital that we not approach the Gospel of John like a textbook or a documentary. John’s gospel isn’t intended to educate us as it is to introduce us to….well, to God.

John is basically saying through his account – “If you want to know who God is, or what He is like, take a long look at Jesus.”

That’s what we will set out to do. Through John’s selected vignettes, we will get a different view of Jesus than we find in Matthew, Mark or Luke. John wrote his gospel much later than the other three (which had been circulated for years by the time John’s writing), and it’s clear that he had had a lot of time to think over and draw some conclusions about the things he witnessed and experienced.

This Sunday we’ll be reading John 1:1-5, the prologue.

What other famous passage of Scripture starts with “In the beginning…”? What does that tell us about John’s account of Jesus?

John begins by talking about the Word – eternal, creator, light and life. He will later identify the Word as Jesus. The Greek word for…well, word, is Logos. If you feel like it, you might want to read an interesting Wikipedia entry on the very complex ideas that word carried in the 1st Century Greco-Roman world, as well as in Israel.

What significance to you find in  John using a word that was this meaningful in the ancient world to describe Jesus?

If you were to describe the opening of this gospel, would you say it was a) a curtain rising on an epic drama;  b) walking in on a movie that’s already started;  c) hearing a familiar song sung in a foreign language?

That’s enough stuff to think over for now. Hope to see you Sunday.

When I was a kid, my Mom used to buy my brother and I this soap called Fuzzy Wuzzy. It was this bizarre marketing gimmick of an animal shaped soap that would grow “fur” in between uses. Then, when you used it enough times for the outer layers to be washed away, a toy dinosaur was hidden inside. I loved that soap. I kept using that soap faithfully, always with my eye on the prize I was waiting to be revealed.

We’re going to be reading 2 Peter 3:1-13 this Sunday and Peter talks about something similar.

Actually…it’s not similar at all…not even close. But he uses imagery of the elemental patterns of this world melting away and revealing something new underneath. As I read it, I imagine a refiner’s fire burning away all the corruption on the surface of a metal. The idea, poetic or literal, is that at this very moment something is hidden beneath the world as we see and understand it right now. One day Christ will return and with him a new heavens and new earth is revealed. An earth made right again.

That is the very core of our Christian hope. But Peter addresses the hurdles of skepticism that we have to overcome in maintaining that hope.

As you read this section, what does it reveal about God’s seeming delay in concluding his plan? How does that inform you about any area of life where it seems God is delaying his answers?

Peter employs a now/then model for his instruction. We live a certain way right now in anticipation of something in the future.  When the question arises “what does it matter how I live if Christ already paid the price for all my sins?” – how would you answer that question based on what Peter says in v10-13?

Something about a world “all landscaped with righteousness” (as the Message puts it) ignites hope in my heart. I hope it does yours.

See you Sunday!

 

I didn’t get the impression that Anikan Skywalker intentionally set out to become a bad guy…he just sort of veered that way by not paying attention.

I doubt that many church leaders who become abusive set out with the thought “I hope I can destroy a lot of lives”…I sort of think those patterns develop over time.

Peter is going to blast false leaders with both barrels in our study this Sunday – 2 Peter 2:12-22

Again, this is a tough passage to teach from. Matt made a comment a few weeks back about chapter two (you can read the comment here, at the bottom of my post) that really got me thinking about a different way to approach this text.

If we want to AVOID being an abusive church or abusive leaders – it would make sense that we would go the opposite direction from what Peter describes these false leaders to be like.

So…as you read this section about how these dudes are falsely representing the kingdom of God, apply the opposite pattern. I rightly represent the kingdom of God when I __________________.

I’d be interested in what you come up with.

Sometimes we may feel like justice doesn’t get carried out. I can think of many criminal court cases in my lifetime where defendants that had copious amounts of evidence tying them to a crime were set free by a not-guilty verdict. I certainly don’t know if someone is guilty or innocent in those cases – but I know my gut feeling of frustration when I don’t think justice is served.

We seem to be wired to want things to be just – for wrongs to be righted or at very least paid for.

Peter taps into that part of human nature in the section that we’re reading this Sunday – 2 Peter 2:4-11.

This is a pretty difficult passage to teach from. It’s not my favorite subject, and the construction of it is a little unwieldy. Peter uses three examples of divine judgement to reinforce the fact that false, abusive church leaders will one day face a reckoning for how they are treating God’s people. How do you think these three examples help to drive that idea home?

What reason would Peter have for reminding people that God is the one who dispenses justice? Does that idea provide any sort of encouragement to you in a present context?

“the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials…” – From the examples of Noah and Lot, what does Peter seem to be saying about the way God rescues us? My natural inclination is to try and fix things – life, people, circumstances – so that I can remain where I am (especially if I’m comfortable). My attempts at self-rescue haven’t ever yet succeeded in accomplishing what I intend. God’s means of rescue are different – and usually require that we move on from where we are.

How difficult or easy is it for you to trust in God’s rescue plan instead of your own? What have your experiences been with that so far?

If nothing else, it should prove to be a challenging section. See you on Sunday!

This Sunday we’ll be returning to our study in 2 Peter – reading ch 1:16-21.

There are some events that I’ve witnessed in my life that are indelibly etched into my memory. I still remember with distinct clarity watching the TV in horror as the first WTC tower went down. If someone were to come along a few years from now and claim that it never happened…I’d just smile and say, “You’re wrong, I saw it happen”.

But someone could respond “You saw an image on TV, and those can be manipulated”. I’d have to concede that possibility, but then I’d point to all the people in New York that lived through that fateful day – the multitudes of eyewitnesses – their testimony would carry a lot of weight.

By the time Peter is writing this second letter, you get the idea that people are already starting to reevaluate the timetable of Jesus’ kingdom project. This was taking a lot longer than anyone expected it to. Peter is now faced with a fresh crop of teachers, people farther removed from the original events of Jesus’ ministry who are starting to twist and question the veracity of the gospel story.

Peter’s answer to them is “You’re wrong, I saw and heard it all, I was there”.

As we read what Peter says in this text, how would you apply this to your present life? Jesus’ ministry was 2K years ago – so what personal testimony could you give in support of your faith?

Peter talks about the prophetic word, which would probably be talking about the messages we now hold to as the Old and New Testament. If someone asked you if the Bible is true – how would you answer, and what support would you provide for your answer?

These are challenging thoughts – stuff we really NEED to take the time to wrestle with. Hope you can be with us on Sunday….and bring your wrestling shoes as we grapple with some heavyweight thoughts.